HO G2 AC4400CW w/DCC & Sound, UP #6193 Overview
The Union Pacific acquisition of the Southern Pacific in 1996 saw the transfer of SP newly acquired AC4400CWs to a new railroad. As they were essentially brand new, there was no push to repaint these units and they existed for several years without modification. Eventually the AC4400CWs were renumbered with simple patches over the SP paint, but as this was done on a unit-by-unit basis where they were, the patches all had a measure of uniqueness.
Introduced by GE in 1993 and built until 2004, when it was replaced by the Evolution Series Tier II compliant model, the AC4400CW is a staple of modern railroading. 2,834 examples were built with many still plying the rails in their as delivered configurations or as rebuilt variations. Many Class 1, regional, and foreign railroads purchased the AC4400CWs. Ownership spanned the North American Continent and with their long lives, have seen numerous paint scheme variations and ownership changes through the years. The AC4400CW went through many changes during its production. Some are easily noticeable; early units being delivered with GE's Hi-Adhesion Trucks, while later units that had the option for newly developed GE Steerable Truck. Other details are smaller and takes a careful eye to see; the addition of a door stop, how the step wells are reinforced, or the number and positioning of panels and doors.
Athearn has captured all these details thorough research and precision tooling to reproduce dozens of variations. The newly tooled Genesis AC4400CW takes its reign as the new flagship model for Athearn.